International Anti-Corruption Day will be celebrated in Brazil with awards ceremony

Brasília, 6 December 2013 - The International Anti-Corruption Day will be celebrated next Monday, 9 December. In the Brazilian capital, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the Office of the Comptroller General (CGU) will hold an event to mark the date, with the presence of CGU's Chief Minister, Jorge Hage, and the Representative of the UNODC Liaison and Partnership Office in Brazil, Rafael Franzini.

During the ceremony, which will be open to the press, two awards will be presented by CGU and UNODC and a new postage stamp will be released by the Post Office in honor of the International Anti-Corruption Day. In addition, the former CGU Minister Waldir Pires will receive a plaque from the National Association of Federal Auditors for Internal Control (Anafic), as recognition of the work he did at CGU.

The year of 2013 marks the 10th anniversary of the creation of the
UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC). In force since 2005, the Convention has been ratified by 171 countries and aims to strengthen international cooperation, in order to expand actions to prevent and combat corruption around the world.

Corruption is the greatest obstacle to economic and social development nowadays. Every year, US$1 trillion is paid in bribes, while an estimated US$2.6 trillion are stolen by corruption, a sum equivalent to more than 5% of the global Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

This year, UNODC and UNDP jointly organized a competition for young people to design an awareness campaign on the corrosive effects of corruption on development, recognizing the pivotal role of today's youth in driving an agenda for a future built on solid and honest foundations. From among the hundreds of entries received from all corners of the globe, the winner of the competition was 24-year-old Loic Christian Muhunde, a student from Rwanda, whose simple, yet universal message reinforces the idea that development can thrive only when societies tackle the root causes of corruption.

During the COSP5, a number of new UNODC publications on corruption were launched, including a tool to support investigative journalism.
Reporting on Corruption: A Resource Tool for Governments and Journalists covers a wide range of subjects, including the protection of the anonymity of sources, the right of access to information, and self-regulatory measures.